Bevaix

[3] The village of Bevaix is sited in front of a small plateau, near Lake Neuchâtel, on a location showing both Bronze Age and Neolithic settlement and a priory dating to 998.

The discovery nearby of several dugout canoes and boats illuminated techniques of shipbuilding in Gallo-Roman times.

The village was predominantly agricultural until the building of a railway station in 1860, and the drainage of the surrounding wetlands around 1900, when the area became increasingly residential.

Bevaix has an area, as of 2009[update], of 10.8 square kilometers (4.2 sq mi).

[4] The municipality is located in the Boudry district, on a small, marshy plateau near Lake Neuchâtel.

The proposed merger of the municipalities of Bevaix, Boudry and Cortaillod was rejected by the residents.

[9] Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks French (3,120 or 86.6%) as their first language, German is the second most common (183 or 5.1%) and Italian is the third (86 or 2.4%).

[9] The historical population is given in the following chart:[3][13] The prehistoric lake shore settlement at Baie De Bevaix and the neolithic funerary and cultural center of Treytel-A Sugiez are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance.

[14] It is home to the L’Abbaye 2 site, a prehistoric pile-dwelling (or stilt house) settlements that is part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The former village at L'Abbaye 2 is about 180 meters (590 ft) from the lake shore and consisted of a number of stilt houses.

The village site covers an area of about 150 by 80 m (490 by 260 ft) and was probably connected to the shore by a foot bridge.

The number of jobs in the primary sector was 42, of which 36 were in agriculture, 5 were in forestry or lumber production and 1 was in fishing or fisheries.

In the tertiary sector; 120 or 25.8% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 12 or 2.6% were in the movement and storage of goods, 42 or 9.0% were in a hotel or restaurant, 33 or 7.1% were in the information industry, 3 or 0.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 26 or 5.6% were technical professionals or scientists, 22 or 4.7% were in education and 117 or 25.2% were in health care.

[9] From the 2000 census[update], 1,069 or 29.7% were Roman Catholic, while 1,490 or 41.4% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.

Reconstruction of the Gallo-Roman Bevaix boat
Aerial view (1954)
Baie De Bevaix site